The full story...

Uncertain future for Tasmanian NBN delivery

DAVID MARK: Tasmanians are still digesting the Federal Government's strategic review of the NBN, but it's still unclear how broadband will be delivered there.

Tasmania was one of the first places to get the NBN and most of the state was supposed to get fibre connected to homes by 2016.

But the contractor says it's costing too much to deliver. Moreover it's unclear whether the Government will fulfil the promised to take fibre to homes throughout the state or adopt the fibre to the node model.

Felicity Ogilvie reports.

FELICITY OGILVIE: Launceston businessman Darren Alexander has recently been connected to the NBN. He says it's so much faster and cheaper than his old internet that he's already thinking of expanding his software company.

DARREN ALEXANDER: We're actually considering doing online and education and training around our software where that was difficult in the past and we've always had to fly to the places and do it.

You know I actually had a call, a Skype call and a training call with a customer in Perth WA the other day and it worked beautifully. They couldn't believe how clear they could see us at our end, but certainly there end was not as good as our service because they weren't on the same connection.

FELICITY OGILVIE: He's worked with the previous federal government to promote the NBN and he's passionate about the potential for the NBN to help businesses relocate to regional areas.

DARREN ALEXANDER: What I want though is I want to be able to be treated as same citizens as other parts of the country, and that's what the NBN was always going to do for me, was allowing me to be playing on the same level playing field as people in Sydney and Brisbane and Melbourne and I think that's what was critically important.

FELICITY OGILVIE: The NBN is delivered directly to Mr Alexander's business. But there's no guarantee that the rollout is going to continue directly to Tasmanian businesses and homes.

The Federal Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull says the contractor delivering the NBN to Tasmania, Visionstream, has asked for more money to complete the project.

MALCOLM TURNBULL: So the issue has never been the NBN Co not being prepared to fulfil its part of the bargain, which is to pay contractor the contractor rates agreed to. The issue is the contractor says he can't make any money, in fact he loses money at those rates and that is why there have been – there are ongoing discussions between the contractor and NBN Co to see if some resolution can be found.

FELICITY OGILVIE: NBN Co is discussing the contract with Visionstream, but can't say when the matter will be resolved.

MALCOLM TURNBULL: Everyone agrees, I agree, that if money and time were no object, you would run fibre everywhere. Regrettably, money and time are very important because people who don't have broadband want to get it sooner, want to get it now and of course money is important because the more you spend the more taxpayers have got to foot the bill.

FELICITY OGILVIE: The Tasmanian Premier, Lara Giddings, raised the issue of the NBN at COAG today. She says it would be six times cheaper to rollout the NBN on power poles rather than continuing to install the fibre underground.

LARA GIDDINGS: Using our electricity poles, we're very happy to work with them on that model if they cannot implement the proper promised model of underground cabling in Tasmania.

FELICITY OGILVIE: Now what about the actual method of delivering the NBN to people's homes and businesses, would you be satisfied with fibre to the node rather than fibre to the premise?

LARA GIDDINGS: Fibre to the node is 20th Century technology not 21st Century technology, we must have our fibre into the homes of Tasmanians and into the businesses of Tasmanians as well.

FELICITY OGILVIE: NBN Co is currently considering the idea of rolling out the Tasmanian NBN above ground.

But there's no timeframe for when a decision will be made on the method of delivering the NBN in Tasmania.